and in a week where the president has been questioned for nominated chuck hagel for defense secretary, would it have helped the president to take a stronger stance on this issue today? either telling the country the troop count or being open of the fact of, hey, look, we're not on the schedule to announce this and telling the public why. >> no, at the end of the day, you go through your evaluations. i talked to a three-star general who served in afghanistan who made it perfectly clear that these are delicate situations, you're still dealing with a country where we're trying to get the security forces up to par. you also don't just want to just make some kind of announcement without thinking it through. i talked to a senior administration official who said to lead 10,000 troops in afghanistan could cost us $30 billion a year. the president also has to make an economic decision, as well. so, look, if panetta is saying i want it done in weeks and the president is simply saying i'm going to take a few more months, i say take your time because you're dealing with the lives of american troo